My wife and I went to South street in downtown Philly over the 4th.
We saw these at an old light store on 313 south street.
The lady was on the phone with her mother but was "nice" enough to
pause and tell us the tikis start at $500.00 and up, and that they were form some
old restaurant. There must have been ten or more.
Can't tell if they really were or not.
This lady was a b!@%$ch!
I hope they curse her for life.
Pictures taken next day.

i'll take the maori one!! where do i send the money??? i need to get it before a certain popular tiki author here on t.c. who has way more carvings than god runs out there and snaps them all up for his greedy self!!

These may be from the old Kona Kai in Philly since it was noted that that location was the flagship. I will venture down this weekend and try to find the place. Maybe it will finally pay-off to be in this locale.

Hey Matt, you beat me to it, here's what I was typing while you posted :

"Now now now, Skip! Though I sympathize with your frustration, cursing others is bad mana! Judging by the patina and the dinged-upness of the the two freestanding ones, these indeed COULD possibly be from the original Kona Kai. Especially the Maori one has a level of quality that I would associate with the grand Armet & Davis Marriot chain flagship.

Since a while back I have heard of rumors that some Philly antique store has the Kona Kai Tikis, but that they are very pricey. This would fit the bill. On the other hand though, the poles do not look quality enough to come from there. I do not think that the owner of the store would be a reliable source, and I do not have any interior photos of freestanding carvings from the place, unfortunately."

I am looking forward to more photos for possible identification, maybe these puppies will finally find a home where they will be appreciated.

I will do my best to recon this place on Saturday and will report back (hopefully with more photos too). I may have to break out the plastic since shipping a new tiki to Allentown would cost $100 these may be bargains.

I do not know if they are open on sat or not.
And Big bro you are right but this lady seemed like
she needed the money.
It just kills me when these dealers have such an attitude.
Hey matt When she said $500.00 and up there were some three footers in there
you don't see in the photos.
The maori tiki had abalone eyes hard to see in picture.
She had a cool HUGE fish float for $200.00 blue.
Try to take better pictures.
Looks like the name of the place is C. Neri?
Good luck all!

I am pretty sure that the Maori Tiki is an Oceanic Arts carving. It looks very much like the "phone Tiki" that can be seen on one of their large photos they have from the short-lived Bora Bora Room in Encino, CA (that version had a payphone implanted in its belly). I used to have a slide of that photo, but it is M.I.A., sorry Since O.A. supplied the Kona Kai, it looks like a match.

pah!! i was omly kiddin' i love the maori and the ku figure but i'll bet they want a grand for each based on what skip said....i can't afford either right now....hope they find a good home...they are real cool!!

I'd say yer right.
That's why I did not press any farther.
Right now I don't have the room or the cash for them any way.
But if she said something low they would be here right now.
If you take cash then offer something kind of low they will bend.
Ya got to let them see the cash or ask if they will take cash.
They hate to let that walk out the door.

skip is right..there is a reason they are still there and not purchased yet...even big bro heard of them being there awhile back and since then, there they still sit....where's kohalacharms when we need him....i bet he'll swoop in and rescue them!!.....why is it that these type of freaks that sell antiques always gravitate to the antique business?? this is not the first time i have heard of or encountered such weird attitudes toward the items that they presumably are selling....nice to know they are set financially and need not worry how the bills will get paid, that they can sit on all this stuff for the highest price offer......this is just like that witco dealer awhile back in kansas that had all that witco for sale at outrageous prices.....

It is for sale.
My wife told me the lady said $500.00 to $3500.00.
Guess how much the Maori is if thats true.
But then you get the person at the right time you never know.
I've seen stuff sell for half price or even less.
I don't know how this lady stays in business.
She has cool lights but how many could she sell?
Matt if nothing else get the float that was a good buy.